The transition between high school and college can be difficult for anyone. Review the information below outlining some of the major differences between high school and college.
How is college different from high school?
Following the Rules in High School | Choosing Responsibility in College |
|---|---|
| High school is mandatory and usually free. | College is voluntary and can be expensive. |
| Your time is structured by others. | You manage your own time. |
| You need permission to participate in extracurricular activities. | You decide whether to participate in co-curricular activities. |
| You can count on your parents and teachers to remind you of your responsibilities and to guide you in setting priorities. | You must balance your responsibilities and set priorities for yourself. |
| Each day you proceed from one class directly to another, spending six hours each day, or 30 hours a week, in class. | You often have hours between classes and class times vary throughout the day and evening. You spend only 12-16 hours each week in class. |
| Most of your classes are arranged for you. | You arrange your own schedule in consultation with your advisor. Schedules tend to look lighter than they really are. |
| You are responsible for knowing what it takes to graduate. | Graduation requirements are complex and differ from year to year. You are expected to know those that apply to you. |
| Guiding Principle: You will usually be told what to do and corrected if your behavior is out of line. | Guiding Principle: You are expected to take responsibility for what you do and don't do, as well as for the consequences of your decisions. |
Going to High School Classes | Succeeding in College Classes |
|---|---|
| The school year is 36 weeks long and some classes extend over both semesters. | The academic year is divided into two separate 15-week semesters, plus a week after each semester for final exams. |
| Classes generally have no more than 35 students. | Classes may number up to 100 students depending on the institution. |
| You may study outside of class as little as 0-2 hours a week, and this may be mostly last-minute test preparation. | You need to study at least 2-3 hours outside of class for each hour you are in class. |
| You seldom need to read anything more than once, and sometimes listening in class in enough. | You need to review class notes and text material regularly. |
| You are expected to read short assignments that are then discussed, and often re-taught in class. | You are assigned substantial amounts of reading and writing which may not be directly addressed in class. |
| Guiding Principle: You will usually be told in class what you need to learn from assigned readings. | Guiding Principle: It is up to you to read and understand the assigned materials, lectures, and assignments. |
High School Teachers | College Professors |
|---|---|
| Teachers check your completed homework. | Professors may not always check completed homework, but they will assume you can perform the same tasks on tests. |
| Teachers remind you of your incomplete work. | Professors may not remind you of incomplete work. |
| Teachers approach you if they believe you need assistance. | Professors are usually open and helpful, but most expect you to initiate contact if you need assistance. |
| Teachers are often available for conversation before, during, or after class. | Professors expect and want you to attend their scheduled office hours. |
| Teachers have been trained in teaching methods to assist in imparting knowledge to students. | Professors have been trained as experts in their particular areas of research. |
| Teachers provide you with information you missed when you were absent. | Professors expect you to get any notes from classes you missed from your classmates. |
| Teachers present material to help you understand the material in the textbook. | Professors may not follow the textbook. Instead, to amplify the text, they may give illustrations, provide background information, or discuss research about the topic you are studying. Or they may expect you to relate the classes to the textbook readings. |
| Teachers often write information on the board to be copied in your notes. | Professors may lecture nonstop, expecting you to identify the important points in your notes. When professors write on the board, it may be to amplify the lecture, not to summarize it. Good notes are a must. |
| Teachers impart knowledge and facts, sometimes drawing direct connections and leading you through the thinking process. | Professors expect you to think about and synthesize seemingly unrelated topics. |
| Teachers often make time to remind you of assignments and due dates. | Professors expect you to read, save, and consult the course syllabus (outline); the syllabus spells out exactly what is expected of you, when it is due, and how you will be graded. |
| Teachers carefully monitor class attendance. | Professors may not formally take attendance, but they are likely to know whether or not you attended. |
| Guiding Principle: High School is a teaching environment in which you acquire facts and skills. | Guiding Principle: College is a learning environment in which you take responsibility for thinking through and applying what you have learned. |
Tests in High School | Tests in College |
|---|---|
| Testing is frequent and covers small amounts of material. | Testing is usually infrequent and may be cumulative, covering large amounts of material. You, not the professor, need to organize the material to prepare for the test. A particular course may have only 2 or 3 tests in a semester. |
| Makeup tests are often available. | Makeup tests are seldom an option; if they are, you need to request them. |
| Teachers frequently rearrange test dates to avoid conflict with school events. | Professors in different courses usually schedule tests without regard to the demands of other courses or outside activities. |
| Teachers frequently conduct review sessions, pointing out the most important concepts. | Professors rarely offer review sessions, and when they do they expect you to be an active participant, one who comes prepared with questions. |
| Guiding Principle: Mastery is usually seen as the ability to reproduce what you were taught in the form in which it was presented to you or to solve the kinds of problems you were shown how to solve. | Guiding Principle: Mastery is often seen as the ability to apply what you’ve learned to new situations or to solve new kinds of problems. |
Grades in High School | Grades in College |
|---|---|
| Grades are given for most assigned work. | Grades may not be provided for all assigned work. |
| Consistently good homework grades may raise your overall grade when test grades are low. | Grades on tests and major papers usually provide most of the course grade. |
| Extra credit projects are often available to help you raise your grade. | Extra credit projects cannot, generally speaking, be used to raise your grade in a college course. |
| Initial test grades, especially when they are low, may not have an adverse effect on your final grade. | Watch out for your first tests. These are usually "wake-up calls” to let you know what is expected. They also may account for a substantial part of your course grade. You may be shocked when you get your grades. |
| You may graduate as long as you have passed all required courses with a grade of D or higher. | You may graduate only if your average in classes meets the departmental standard—typically a 2.0 or C. |
| Guiding Principle: Effort counts. Courses are usually structured to reward a “good-faith effort.” | Guiding Principle: Results count. Though “good-faith effort” is important in regard to the professor’s willingness to help you achieve good results, it will not substitute for results in the grading process. |
How to make the transition to college
- Take control of your own education. Motivate yourself. Your success rests on your shoulders.
- Get to know your professors; they are your single greatest resource. Visit them during office hours.
- Create your own support systems, and seek help when you realize you may need it.
- Take advantage of Student Support Services, Tutoring Service, the Writing Center, and the many other resources available at UW-Platteville.
- Plan ahead to satisfy academic obligations and make room for everything else.
- Test yourself: enroll in at least one course that will really challenge you.
- Make thoughtful decisions: do not take a course just to satisfy a requirement, and don’t drop any course too quickly.
- Think beyond the moment: set goals for the semester, the year, and your college career. You will thank yourself later.
